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Jessica Chastain covers the special summer 2012 fashion and beauty issue of T Magazine. In the accompanying interview, the gorgeous actress dishes on her childhood and growing up in Northern California, fashion, her career, and dreams come true.

It was a great year for Jessica Chastain. In 2011, the
35-year-old actress appeared in six films, gathering 30 nominations
and 16 awards, among them a National Society of Film Critics award
for Best Supporting Actress for 'The Tree of Life,' 'The Help' and
'Take Shelter', and BAFTA and Academy Award nominations for 'The
Help.' T Magazine Summer 2012 had the chance to sit down for a chat
with Chastain and talk about her childhood and growing up in
Northern California, fashion, her career, and dreams come true.

"It’s a strange moment when your dreams become your reality," she
says. "What does it mean? Yesterday I had my portrait taken for the
Academy. The photographer told me he shot Rita Hayworth! For the
rest of my life, I am 'the Oscar-nominated Jessica Chastain.'"

Chastain grew up in Northern California. "Growing up, a big expense
was a fashion magazine," she says. "I got $100 for clothes at the
beginning of the year, and I had to be very careful about what
pieces would last — I bought thrift and vintage."
The actress confessed in the interview with the magazine that she
was a romantic girl without a lot of friends. "I was awkward. I
looked like a boy when I was 8 years old — lanky with short red
hair. You know that book 'Ramona the Pest'? I felt like that," she
says.

What about fashion? "I’m not a flip-flop girl" — Dolce &
Gabbana sunglasses and a man’s vintage gray fedora because, she
says, "I like a quirky, old-fashioned look."

On appearing on the red carpet, the actress confesses that, "The
red carpet takes a while to get used to. The photographers, the
yelling aspect of it. But I get to wear something very
beautiful."
Her first red carpet experience was at Cannes for the premiere of
'The Tree of Life.' For the event, Zac Posen made her a dress,
which she kept. "I cleaned it and stored it for a daughter
someday," she says. "And I had the best accessories with it — Sean
Penn on one hand and Brad Pitt on the other. I have an emotional
response to clothes. I love to be able to wear a Givenchy
gown."

In the interview, Jessica admits that she's not overprotective with
her image. "My job as an actor is not to be vain. When we were
making 'The Help' in Mississippi, we drank moonshine and had huge
dance parties. I ate a lot of fried food. I had to gain 15 pounds
for the role," the actress says.

Moreover, Chastain says she's not a huge exerciser. "I’m not the
girl who goes to spinning class. I do yoga once in a while. I used
to think about dieting, but I’m vegan now, so it’s not really a
problem," she told the magazine.

On her future projects, Chastain confides she would like to work
with Lars von Trier and Darren Aronofsky and, she says, to do "a
mystical horror film! Doing the same thing over and over again is
just boring." Does this thing apply when it comes to playing the
same role every night in the theater? "Oh, no! I love being on
stage. There’s an energy-sharing in the room, with the audience,
and you’re responsible for that energy. You can feel when they’re
bored — the coughing, the unwrapping. That’s what makes it
terrifying!"